Health care professionals are the U.S. health care system. They’re at the heart of every life saved and every patient cared for, in return facing challenges and strain unimaginable to most of us.
Yet, despite alarming levels of burnout and untreated mental health conditions exacerbated by the weaknesses of the system in which they serve, Congress has allowed the groundbreaking law supporting their mental health to expire. To avoid losing the progress we’ve made and further threatening the readiness of our health care workforce both now and in the future, Congress must reauthorize the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act before the end of the year.
Named in honor of Corey’s sister-in-law, Lorna Breen, an emergency physician who died by suicide on April 26, 2020, the Lorna Breen Act has already led to significant strides in supporting the well-being of those who care for us. The original legislation, passed in 2022, has helped develop suicide prevention resources tailored to health care workers, supported well-being programs at 45 local hospitals, and provided training for health care leaders to tackle the root causes of burnout. Passed with broad bipartisan support, the Lorna Breen Act proved that supporting the well-being of health care workers is an issue that everyone can agree on.
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